You have recently published an extract from a report to Bristol City Council’s Cabinet concerning AVTM/Metrobus.

The part of the report you have published is not for publication by virtue of paragraph of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006). This is because the information contained therein is information relating to the financial or business affairs of a particular person (including the authority holding the information) ie it is commercially sensitive information relating to the value of a contract yet to be awarded.

In the circumstances, publication of this information seriously jeopardises the project and the Council’s ability to deal with this matter in the best interests of the people of Bristol.

You are therefore required to remove this document immediately.

Failure to do so may necessitate the Council in having to take further legal proceedings.

To confirm, once the contract has been awarded then information that will assist the public in understanding the decision making process, will be published.

I do hope that you can understand why this information should not be in the public domain at this particular time and will assist us by removing it immediately. Please confirm by return that you will be doing this.

Could you confirm on what basis you will be taking your “further legal proceedings” please?

Obviously it is not by virtue of paragraph of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006) since this is NOT a gagging or confidentiality clause and it does not prohibit us disclosing information in the way you appear to be claiming.

Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006) is an exemption clause that simply allows the authority not to disclose the information as required under Part VA of the LGA 1972.

What’s that to do with us?

We look forward to your response.

Toodle pip!

And, er, here’s the dickhead lawyer not understanding how to use email and admitting he has to get his boss to write his letters for him!

Who is this joker!
Shahzia-Could you draft a response for me to send please. I suspect it won’t make an iota of difference unless we can identify the perpetrators and take them to court.
Thanks
Sanjay

And Sanjay will be taking us to court for what exactly? We await the reply with interest …

***CORRECTION***

After further research it appears that Sanjay Prashar is the Service Director (and monitoring officer!) for Bristol City Council Legal Services and therefore the unfortunate Shahzia Daya’s boss. Yes, this is the oaf now in charge who replaces Liam “Malfoy” Nevin. Perhaps he should focus a little more on making sure the council’s delegated planning decisions are constitutional and a little less time making a fool of himself with crap threats?

10 thoughts on “LAUGHABLE TAKEDOWN NOTICE FROM INCOMPETENT COUNCIL LAWYERS”

Can’t stop laughing! Also see Place meeting vid where the legal lady said that the mayor didn’t have to answer questions from members of the public but could be answered indirectly by having the chair parrot the questions from the public back to him….and everyone was in the same room! No one has got to the bottom of what part of the law was valid. This was because, we believe, that the mayor asked for someone to make it up so he didn’t have to answer questions from the public. That was unsuccessful as he had to answer questions anyway and it took much longer as it was triangulated. You couldn’t make it up.

I have also have a string of emails which you might be interested in – starting off with an inept ‘Democratic Services’ officer erroneously copying an internal email to members of the public who had submitted questions to the PLACE scrutiny meeting in Sept.
It’s too long to copy and paste in here’ but is of interest because it features Shahzia Daya’s defence of the Mayor at the Sept Scrutiny meeting where she claimed that the Local Gvt Act prevented him answering questions from members of the public at the meeting.
I have had a long-running dialogue with ‘Democratic Services’ over the woefully inadequate way members of the public are provided with information before and at council meetings, plus the new draconian constitution which censors public participation further.
If you email me, I’ll send you the full string be return….

“‘Prashar was previously a legal services manager at Torbay Council and a solicitor at Bracknell Forest Borough Council and Surrey County Council.”
Looks to me like another one on the never ending gravy train that is local government employment. How long since he ever had a proper job?